hamburgers left in the microwave over night??

[d1sneyf4n]

We made hamburgers last night and I put the left over cooked ones in the microwave while we were eating dinner and forgot all about them until about 20 minutes ago. Most places on the internet say they are bad. What do you all think. I am praying someone will tell me they are ok. We have so many of them.

 

[RMulieri]

Honestly I wouldn't chance it.I know it's not what you want to hear, but even cooked food left overnight can have loads of bacterial growth

 

[Lisa71]

Ok, I am RN, and they are definately BAD. In fact, don't give them to your dog (not that I am a vet). Tons of icky things!! In food service even a little while at room temp makes them go in the trash.

 

[d1sneyf4n]

Honestly I wouldn't chance it.I know it's not what you want to hear, but even cooked food left overnight can have loads of bacterial growth

That's what I am afraid of. Geezzz I do this ALL the time. I normally throw the meat out just as a precaution but I was really hoping that was not necessary. Oh well, perhaps one day I will learn.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Throw them out. Rule is 2 hours total time out.

 

[d1sneyf4n]

They are now in the trash. Thanks guys.

 

[debrapagliasotti]

Yep, sorry, I'm gonna have to agree with the others...they need to be tossed.

 

[cglaura]

I have done this so many times too. But, I found a solution...if your microwave has a timer, set it for 45min - an hour...or any other timer you might have handy.

 

[scrapquitler]

We made hamburgers last night and I put the left over cooked ones in the microwave while we were eating dinner and forgot all about them until about 20 minutes ago. Most places on the internet say they are bad. What do you all think. I am praying someone will tell me they are ok. We have so many of them.

When in doubt, throw it out.

Really, in this case, no doubt involved. They weren't kept at a safe temperature overnight, so I would NOT want to eat them. Would a doctors visit be worth the cost of the burgers? No.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

How much is your co-pay? If it costs less to buy a new package of hamburgers I would just throw them out

 

[ccgirl]

We made hamburgers last night and I put the left over cooked ones in the microwave while we were eating dinner and forgot all about them until about 20 minutes ago. Most places on the internet say they are bad. What do you all think. I am praying someone will tell me they are ok. We have so many of them.

I consider myself frugal, and sometimes downright cheap. I despise throwing out any food and make frequent stir fry meals because of it. BUt, now way in heck would I chance eating those. Even though they are cooked there is bacteria all over them now. Sorry that's not what you want to hear.

 

[AmandaRG]

I have done this so many times too. But, I found a solution...if your microwave has a timer, set it for 45min - an hour...or any other timer you might have handy.

This has totally solved that problem for us as well! We often portion leftovers for DH's lunch, but if we forgot to put them in the fridge after they cooled off (often don't go back into the kitchen after cleanup) it was so disappointing.

Sorry about last night's leftovers!

 

[WicketsMom]

Yep throw them out! However, my MIL would disagree as she routinely cooks things and leaves them sitting out for hours, often overnight. Then she puts them away and wonders why I refuse to eat (or allow my son to eat) anything out of her refrigerator.

 

[grahamfam3]

Bad for people, but I wonder if there is a Vet or Vet Tech here who would know if dogs can eat them or not, their digestive systems are different from ours.

 

[2binak]

I've got to ask - why did you put them in the microwave? Why not leave them on a plate & cover them with foil or put them in a pyrex or other reuseable dish with a lid and leave them on the counter?

 

[nemofans]

I have read that you shouldn't leave your food sit out to cool & that you should put it in the fridge anyway, even still very warm. This way you don't risk any bacteria growth. I read this while doing some research on making my own baby food for my DS.

 

[libcon]

Throw them out....they are no good.

 

[imama]

Yep throw them out! However, my MIL would disagree as she routinely cooks things and leaves them sitting out for hours, often overnight. Then she puts them away and wonders why I refuse to eat (or allow my son to eat) anything out of her refrigerator.

I have to at this because my MIL does the same thing! Dh and I discovered it last year when we found a pot of spaghetti sauce (filled with meatballs and sausage) left out overnight and told her she had forgotten to put it up and she'd have to throw it out. She informed US that it was unsafe to put hot food in the fridge and we always needed to let it cool over night before we put it away. Our first thought was all the leftovers we had eaten there before and then how many times FIL had had food poisoning from "salad". Moral of the story?? No more leftovers for us at MIL's house!

And yes, DH did show her the WEBSITES that talked about leaving food out was dangerous and how even putting hot leftovers in the fridge will not harm your fridge or your food, but she was having none of it. Bless her...she's just doing things the way HER mother did them...but I gotta tell you, I'm still not eating any leftovers!

And OP, I feel your pain. One day, I put a whole chicken in the crock pot, complete with wonderful ingredients. Was soooo looking forward to that chicken! About six hours later, I discovered that while I had turned on the crock pot, I had FORGOTTEN TO PLUG IT IN. So, not only did I waste money by having to throw out the stupid chicken, but we also had to order pizza because that was the last of my food before a big grocery trip the next day.

 

[dzorn]

trash.

Denise in MI

 

[seashoreCM]

I And OP, I feel your pain. One day, I put a whole chicken in the crock pot, complete with wonderful ingredients. Was soooo looking forward to that chicken! About six hours later, I discovered that while I had turned on the crock pot, I had FORGOTTEN TO PLUG IT IN. So, not only did I waste money by having to throw out the stupid chicken, but we also had to order pizza because that was the last of my food before a big grocery trip the next day.

You could probably have saved the chicken by cooking it well. Cook it long and hot enough to both span the recommended time for cooking and include a 10 minute period with the temperature of the entire contents sustained at at least 180 degrees.